Eleven people have been charged with illegal picketing for staging a protest outside the Russian embassy in Minsk on April 2. The picket was expected to highlight Russia’s imperial policies on so-called Day of Unity of the Peoples of Belarus and Russia.

Five minutes after the start of the picket, the protesters were approached by police officers. As a result, all of them faced charges under Art. 23.34 the Administrative Code (violation of the order of organizing or holding mass events).